CSA does not care how much I really earn
My story may be all too familiar however, I am the father of a fantastic little girl. Having split up with her mother who I was with for 8 years things inevitably started to go south. Making the hard decision of leaving the family home I now live in a 2 up 2 down whilst her mother has a 6 bedroom home with all the trimmings.
I also have Bipolar Affective Disorder, and have bouts of severe depression and can get particularly confused with everyday tasks, making working with the CSA somewhat of a death wish (No worries I am not that kind of depressive ;o)
My first encounter with the CSA was based on a 3 month salary review, I work in sales and happened to have the best month of my career at the end of that quarter. Fair enough I am happy to share the wealth when it is there, however the CSA deemed it appropriate to average that out over 12 months increasing my monthly payments to a point that my base salary could not support. It didn’t matter how many times I sent in and showed payslips they would not reduce the payment. Having eventually got a reassessment I changed jobs (Big mistake) the process started again as I dutifully notified the CSA of my new job and earnings, I pointed out that the overpayment for my first assessment would go a long long way to covering future payments…doesn’t work like that does it so I kissed goodbye to c. £6k.
My new assessment was also wrong based on the amount of time that I have access to my daughter apprx 180 nights a year, unlike the 52 that her mother is sticking to. It doesn’t matter that the school can verify the time I pick her up and drop her off or parents or even her, I am the liar and mustn’t be trusted.
The next step involves me refusing to make any payment until a fair assessment is conducted, this then goes to another department and I do not hear anything back for 6 months.
6 months later I call to find out where the new assessment is and one is produced which is incorrect. I ask for another, and another. On one day I received 2 letters exactly the same only one stated a high amount of payment per week and the other £0. I called up and was told (And I swear this is the truth) “The one you opened last should be your due amount”
I then get a Court Enforcement Order in the post, the amount due is still in correct and I phone up the CSA to point this out and to find out why I have a court order against me, the reply “You have not kept up payments for 6 months” I retort that I have not had a correct assessment for the past 6 months so how could I pay an amount that not even they are aware of…. do they listen? well.. NO!
They agree to adjourn the hearing, which means forget about it for 2 months. I then get a note saying that I am required to give an interview under caution as my partner has told them that I am not disclosing my income!
I turn up armed to the back teeth with bank account statements, pay slips letter and emails from my prior FD’s I even end up engaging in email conversations copying in the Legal Enforcement Officers, however I am the father and therefore obviously the liar.
I am now facing a court hearing next week at which I have been told that the judge will not hear my case but feel the need to be present anyway.
My partner is thinking about leaving me as she has heard that when the courts cannot extract monies from the NRP they can come after the current partners.
From Day One, all I have wanted is a fair assessment and an explanation of how this is achieved and then I am happy to make payments, however this approach is far to logical and I find myself in my current position…Fighting and fighting and fighting with people who have no consideration for me, my family or the long term effects that are caused by badly trained individuals working within a horrifically inadequate system.
It would be laughable if not for the fact that it takes so much time, effort, money and emotional energy to talk around this ridiculous system.
Forgive my rant…my question is: How can I get the court case stopped based purely on the fact that the assessment is incorrect?
Thank you